Dry-wood-bending machine



Feb. 17. 1931. T. R. LIVINGSTON 1,792,596

DRY WOOD BENDING MACHINE Fi led Sept. 8, 1928 2 Sheets+$heet l 790 0? 1/ w/ves 7-0 Feb. 17, 1931. T. R. LIVINGSTON 1,792,595-

DRY WOOD BENDING MACHINE F iled Sept. 8, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 75m RAW/v5.5 row,

Patented Feb. 17, 1931 UNITED-STATES PATENT OFFICE TROY R. LIVINGSTON, 01? M'UNQIE, INDIANA, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO

THE DELPHOS BENDING COMPANYQOF DELPHOS, OHIO,.A CORPORATION'OF OHIO.

DRY-WOOD-BENDI1\TG MACHINE 7 Application filed September My invention relates to dry-wood bending machines, of the general type shown in Patents Nos. 960,525 and 1,507,368, granted to Charles W. Elliottvon June 7, 191( and Sep tember 2, 1924, respectively. v The present application 7 is directed to means for supporting the wood strip as and between the latter side of the wood and the latter pair of rolls. The heat from the heat ,ing roller, and the pressure by the co-op-era tion of the rollers against the wood, can produce a very effective bending of the wood. However, immediately after the bending, the wood retains for some time the heat which has been taken up from the heating roll; and during the ensuing period of cooling, the wood is more orless subject to permanent deformation from the desired shape.

The present invention, therefore, is directed to means for holding the wood in.

the desired shape after it is bent and while it is cooling; to the end that the deformation from the desired shape above referred to may be avoided;

In carrying out my invention, I use the heated roll and co-operating rolls as has been done heretofore; but in addition I pro vide a series of supporting rollers, which 'act to support the bent wood after it has passed from the heated bending roll. These supporting rolls are adjustable individually and col lectively, and are arranged so that any roll can co-Operate with either side of the bent strip of wood. In this way, it 1s possible to provide a track between these'rollers at any desired location and of any desired shape, to

conform to the shape and position of the bent wood as it comes from the bending rolls. I

The accompanying drawings illustrate my invention: Fig. 1 is a transverse vertlcal 8,1928. Serial no. 304,663, 7

section through a dry-wood bending machine embodying my invention; Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal section through such machine,

taken substantially on the line 22 of F ig."

1; Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section through one of the supporting rollers and itsmounting,

taken substantially on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

The dry-wood bending machine has a frame 10 in which there is a heated bending roll 11 and two co-operating rolls 12 and 13 which act on strips of wood 14 as they pass from left to right (Fig. 1) through the machine to bend such strips into desired curved shapes. The rolls are relatively adjustable, as by adjusting screws 11" and 12'; to produce dif ferent curvatures of the wood. The wood wood, to bear against the convex surface of the wood as the bending takes place and for some time afterward. These sheets are desirably heated, as by gas burners 15 just I before they reachthe place where the bending of the wood takes place. Pressure rollers 16 liezbetween the-rolls 12 and 13 and are pressed upward by a spring 17 against the flexible metal sheets 15 at about the placewhere the bending of the wood occurs to hold the flexible metal sheets 15 against the surface of the wood and to hold the wood'against the surface of the roll 11 during the bending action. One of the rolls, desirably the heated roll 11, is suitably driven, having a gear 18 at one end for that purpose.

The roll 11 is heated from within, by a stationary gas burner 21 which is supplied .with gas through a supporting hollow rod or pipe 22 which also serves as the support on which the roll 11 is journaled.

The rolls 12 and 13 an'dthepressure rollers 16 are shown as being mounted in a vertically reciprocable sub-frame 25 reciprocable by cams 26 but that forms no part of my present invention. Indeed, for the purposes of my present invention, it is assumed that the subframe 25 is usually if not always stationary,

and that the action of the cams 26 in raising and lowering of such sub-frame is not possible; as would occur as a result of disconnecting the drive for the cams 26 if such cams are present in the machine.

In order to support the wood strips 14 after they are bent, I provide a series of rollers 31, shown as six in number, which have axes substantially parallel to those of the rolls 11, 12, and 13. These rollers 31 are individually and collectively adjustable to conform to the desired shape of the bent wood strips asthey leave the bending rolls and maintain the strip in the desired shape as it travels forward, substantially free from distortion by reason of its weight or from other causes. Any roll 31 may act on either face of the wood strips, either the convex face or the concave face; and Fig.1 shows two of such rollers 31 acting on the concave or upper face and four of them acting on the convex or lower face.

The rollers 31 are mounted on a rollercarrying frame 32. Such roller-carrying frame 32 has a pivotal mounting as provided by pivot bolts 33 on a pair of adjustable supporting plates 34, one at each side of the machine. Each supporting plate 34 has a pivotal mounting 35 on its end of the frame 10, and may be adjustable about such pivotal mounting by an adjustable screw 36 passing through a lug 37 in said supporting plate 34 and bearing against the edge of the main frame 10. The supporting plates 34 may be clamped in adjustable position by clamping bolts 38 which can be screwed through any one of a series of holes 39 in the supporting plates 34 and into the frame 10. By the adjustment provided by the screws 36 and 33 and holes 37, the supporting plates 34 may be adjusted to accomplish the adjustment of the pivotal axis of the roller-carryin frame 32.

E uch pivotal axis is itself adjustable "ii the supporting plates 34. To this end, such plates are provided with upwardly opening slots in which the pivot bolts 33 are located; and the pivot bolts 33 are adjustable along such slots by adjusting screws 40, as is clear from Fig. 1.

The roller-carrying frame 32 is adjustable as a unit about the axis of the pivot bolts 33. To this end, a pair of turn buckles 42, at each end of the machine, connect the upper portions of the roller-carrying frame 32 to eyes 43 on an upward extension of the main frame 10. By adjusting the turn buckles 42, the roller-carrying frame 32 may be swung as a unit upward or downward about the pivot bolts 33.

The roller supporting frame 32 consists of two separate plates, parallel to each other and disposed at opposite ends of the machine, as is clear from Fig. 3. Each plate furnishes support for one end of each of the rollers 31.

For this purpose, each roller 31 is provided with supporting trunnions 45 at its ends; and each trunnion 45 is journaled in the upper end of an individual slide-plate 46, individually adjustable in the associated plate 32 in its own groove 47. The grooves 47 are conveniently all parallel, as is clear from Fig. 1. '1 =idc-plates are individually adjustable, as stated; and for that purpose each slide-plate has at its lower end an internally threaded screw-receiving lu 43 which receives an adjusting screw 49. mach screw 49 is rotatably mounted traniwersely in the head of an abutment bolt 50, which may be located in any one of a series of holes 51 along the associated groove 47; and is provided at its lower end with a long wrench-receiving head 52, of which two are shown on each side of Fig. 3, located on one side of the head of the abutment bolt 50, and with a thrust collar 53 hearing against the head of such abutment bolt on the other side thereof. Thus by setting the abutment bolt in the desired hole 51, and then turning the screw 49 by a socket wrench on its wrench-receiving head 52, the associated slide-plate 46 may be adjusted along its groove 47, to adjust correspondingly the end of the associated roller 31. Desirably, the slide plate may be clamped in adjusted position by a clamping bolt 54, mounted in the plate 32 and extending through a slot 55 in the slide-plate 46.

As a result of the provisions for adjustment above described, the group of rollers 31 may be adjusted as a unit about the axis of the pivot bolts 33 by suitable manipulation of the turn buckles 42. The location of the pivotal axis furnished by the bolts 33 may be adjusted bythe adjusting screws 36 and held in adjusted position by the clamping bolts 33. These two adjustments just referred to are adjustments of the entire group of rollers 31, as a unit. In addition to this adjustment of the group of rollers as a unit, each roller 31 my be individually adjusted by suitable operations of the abutment bolts 50, the adjusting screws 49, and the clamping bolts 54.

I claim as my invention:

1. A dry-wood bending machine, comprising a heated roll and supplemental rolls for operating on wooden strips to bend them; and a plurality of supporting rollers for supporting the wooden strips in bent form after they are bent, each of said supporting rollers being individually adjustable to bear 011 either side of said wooden strips.

2. A dry-wood bending machine, compris ing a heated roll and supplemental rolls for operating on wooden strips to bend them; and a plurality of supporting rollers for supporting the wooden strips in bent form after they are bent, said supporting rollers being adjustable as a unit about a common pivotal axis, said common pivotal axis being adjustable about a second pivotal axis.

3. A dry-wood bending machine, comprising a heated roll and supplemental rolls for operating on Wooden strips to bend them; and a pluralityof supporting rollers for supporting the Woodenstrips in bent form after they are bent, said supporting-rollers being adjustable both individualy to bear on either side of said Wooden strips and transversely adjustable in two dimensions as a group.

4;. A dry-Wood bending machine, comprising a heated roll and supplemental rolls for operating on Wooden strips to bend them; and a plurality of supporting rollers for sup porting the Wooden strips in bent form after in said guides, said sub-frame being-pivotally and slidably mounted in supporting members, and said supporting members being pivotally mounted on said frame independently of said bending rolls.

In Witness whereof, I, T. R. LIVINGSTON,

have hereunto set my hand at Muncie, Indi- 'ana, this 5 day of September, A. D. one

thousand nine hundred and twenty-eight. TROY R. LIVINGSTON.

they are bent, a carrying frame in which said supporting rollers are mounted, each of said rollers being individually adjustable in said frame to permit application on either side of said Wooden strips, said roller-supporting frame being adjustable to adjust the group of rollers as a unit.

5. A dry-Wood bending machine, comprising a heated roll and supplemental rolls for operating on Wooden strips to bend them;

and a plurality of supporting elements for supporting the Wooden strips in bent form after they are bent, each of said supporting 7' elements being individually adjustable to bear on either side of said Wooden strips.

6. A dry-wood bending machine, comprising a heated roll and supplemental rolls for operating on Wooden strips to bend them; and a plurality of supporting rollers for supporting the Wooden strips in bent form after they are bent, each of said supporting rollers being adjustable both individually to bear on either side of said Wooden strips and as a group.

7. A dry-Wood bending machine, comprising a frame, bending rolls movably mounted therein, a sub-frame having a plurality of guides, supporting rollers for supporting strips of Wood in bent form after they are bent slidably mounted in said sub-frame, and means for adjusting each of some of said rollers to bear on either side of said strips of Wood, said sub-frame being adjustable about an adjustable axis independent of said bending rolls.

8. A dry-Wood bending machine, comprising a frame, bending rolls movably mounted therein, a sub-frame having a plurality of guides, a plurality of supporting rollers for supporting strips of Wood in bent form after they are bent, said supporting rollers being movably mounted in said guides, at least one of said rollers being adjustable to bear on either side of said strips of Wood, said subframe being pivotally adjustable about an 7 adjustable axis, all of said adjustments be 

